Receptacle for extinguishing burning cigars, cigarettes and the like



June 1, 1965 H. w. DAVIS RECEPTACLE FOR EXTINGUISHING BURNING CIGARS, CIGARETTES AND THE LIKE Flled July 5 1963 HAROLD W. DAVlS INVENTOR.

United States Patent 3,186,414 RECEPTACLE FOR EXTINGUISHING BURNING CIGARS, CIGARETTES AND THE LIKE Harold W. Davis, Portland, Oreg. (2720 SE. 10th St.,'Milwaukie, Oreg.) Filed July 5, 1963, Ser. No. 292,842 2 Claims. (Cl. 131-236) This invention relates to new and useful improvements in receptacles for extinguishing burning cigars, cigarettes or the like and adapted, though not restrictively, for attachment to certain standard fixtures on the interior of automobiles and other passenger vehicles.

It is one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide a device of this character which is of simple, efficient, durable and inexpensive construction, which may be removably attached to any suitable support such as, for instance, accessories on the dashboard of an automobile, or any other point of attachment or suspension within convenient reach of the user.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of this kind in the form of a hollow receptacle provided with a fire-extinguishing quantity of water in its bottom portion and a funnel-like receptacle removably attached to its top end for directing burning material or ashes directly into the water supply.

A further object is to provide a device of this character into which a burning article may be dropped without carefully aiming the article into the receptacle or tamping out the burning end of the article as now required in the use of conventional ash trays. This is an important feature of the invention especially when used in an automobile traveling at highway speed where, heretofore, it was necessary for the driver to take his eyes oif the road to find the conventional ash tray and then go through the time-consuming operation of tamping out the burning material.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawing forming a part hereof and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a fragmentary front elevational view of a conventional dash-board of a motor vehicle showing a receptacle made in accordance with the invention suspended from the inside of an open conventional ash tray built into the dash-board.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the device on an enlarged scale and with fragments broken away for clearance of illustration.

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view of a funnel member.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary detail view of the handle of the device showing how it may be suspended from a knob or other similar protrusion from the dash-board, and

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a laterally adjustable bracket usable to support the device shown in FIG. 1 in a manner similar to that shown in FIG. 5.

With continuing reference to the drawing wherein like references of character designate like parts reference numeral 1 indicates the main body of the device which is of hollow generally tubular form, preferably made of plastic, closed as at 2 at its bottom and provided at its top end with a metallic funnel 3 open at its bottom end as at 4. The top of the funnel is formed with a downwardly turned flange 5 for snap-on or sprung en gagement with the top rim 6 of the receptacle 1.

The back surface of the funnel is of flat formation as at 9 as is also the back surface 10 of the receptacle 1 3,186,414 Patented June 1, 1965 ice and this surface is molded integrally with or is secured to a rigid back panel 11 of greater width than that of the receptacle to provide side flanges 12. These flanges are provided with apertures for the inwardly turned hook-shaped bottom ends 13 of an inverted substantially V-shaped handle or bail member 14 which extends upwardly from the receptacle as shown. This bail member is preferably made of bendable wire so that it may be bent downwardly at its apex as at 16 for hooked engagement with the rim of an open standard ash tray 17 built into the dash board of an automobile, or suspended as in FIGURE 5 without the downwardly bent apex from a knob or the like as at 18 protruding from the dash board.

The back wall 9 of the funnel 3 extends upwardly from the top of the receptacle, as shown, to provide suitable space for advertising indicia and/ or fire-prevention symbols or slogans, and also to provide a convenient fingergrip for removing the funnel from the receptacle.

The receptacle 1 is made to contain a quantity of water W to extinguish any burning material such as cigar and cigarette stubs dropped through the open funnel to the interior of the container. This is an important feature because it instantly extinguishes the burning material which could burn the clothing of the smoker, or someone sitting beside him, or perhaps the rug covered floor of the automobile or the floor mats. This convenient means of disposal discourages the dangerous habit of tossing the burning material out of the vehicle in violation of many State and Federal laws.

As a further convenience in attaching receptacle 1 to a dashboard, I provide a bracket (see FIG. 6) made of two matched parts, indicated generally at 20-21, each comprising a front wall 2223, slotted as at 24-25 to accommodate a locking screw or knob 26. One end of each front wall is bent rearwardly as at 27 then outwardly as at 28 to provide cooperating detents for engagement with the inside edges of the dashboard defining an opening therein for the standard ash tray, glove compartment, or the like, into which opening the rearwardly extending portions 27 of the bracket members may be extended, spread laterally and so locked by the screw 26 with the detents 28 in engagement with said edges of the opening.

While I have shown a particular form of embodiment of my invention, I am aware that many minor changes therein will readily suggest themselves to others skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A receptacle for extinguishing burning cigars, cig arettes and the like, comprising in combination,

a vertically disposed hollow generally tubular body member having a flat rear wall and open at its top end and closed at its bottom end to thereby contain a quantity of water,

a rigid back panel secured to and coextensive in height with said rear wall of the body member and extending laterally outward therefrom into flanges along the sides thereof,

hanger means comprising an inverted substantially V-shaped bail member made of a single length of bendable wire,

means swingably attaching the hanger means to the flanges of said back panel,

the hanger means extending upwardly from the body member whereby the said member may be suspended from a support,

a funnel-like member open at its top and bottom ends removably disposed within the top end of said body member and having a fiat rear wall in abutment with the rear wall of the body member and extending upwardly therefrom into a finger grip,

said top end of the funnel-like member having an outwardly and downwardly extending flange extending partially therearound in detachable sprung engagement throughout its length with the top end of said tubular body member.

2. A receptacle as claimed in claim 1 including a supporting bracket therefor made of two matching elongated overlapping plates each slotted in the direction of its length,

a locking screw extending through both of said slots 15 and adapted to lock said plates in laterally adjusted positions relative to each other, one end of each of said plates terminating in a flange extending outwardly therefrom to provide cooperating detents adapted for engagement with the inside edges of an opening for an ash tray in the dashboard of a vehicle.

References (Zited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS D,168,213 11/52 COl1er 131241X 651,345 6/00 Drummond 220-95 1,504,310 8/24 Backus. I 1,772,17 "s/so Benjamin 131 241x FOREIGN PATENTS 347,845 1/22 Germany ABRAHAM G. STONE, Primary Examiner.

JOSEPH S. REICH, Examiner. 

1. A RECEPTACLE FOR EXTINGUISHING BURNING CIGARS, CIGARETTES AND THE LIKE, COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, A VERTICALLY DISPOSED HOLLOW GENERALLY TUBULAR BODY MEMBER HAVING A FLAT REAR WALL AND OPEN AT ITS TOP END AND CLOSED AT ITS BOTTOM END TO THEREBY CONTAIN A QUANTITY OF WATER, A RIGID BACK PANEL SECURED TO AND COEXTENSIVE IN HEIGHT WITH SAID REAR WALL OF THE BODY MEMBER AND EXTENDING LATERALLY OUTWARD THEREFROM INTO FLANGES ALONG THE SIDES THEREOF, HANGER MEANS COMPRISING AN INVERTED SUBSTANTIALLY V-SHAPED BAIL MEMBER MADE OF A SINGLE LENGTH OF BENDABLE WIRE, MEANS SWINGABLY ATTACHING THE HANGER MEANS TO THE FLANGES OF SAID BACK PANEL, THE HANGER MEANS EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE BODY MEMBER WHEREBY THE SAID MEMBER MAY BE SUSPENDED FROM A SUPPORT, 